Arson fire guts Columbia venue

The Columbia House, a reborn restaurant dating from the 1920s, was blackened on the outside and gutted by fire on the inside Sunday.

Kevin Parrish

The Columbia House, a reborn restaurant dating from the 1920s, was blackened on the outside and gutted by fire on the inside Sunday.

A familiar transient has been arrested on arson charges.

"It's a shocking thing," said Dan Connell, a docent at Columbia State Historical Park's museum. "There are a lot of people here, and they're all asking about it."

Daenon Vincent Brewer, 21, of Tuolumne City, is in custody in the Tuolumne County Jail on charges of arson, burglary, violating probation, public drunkenness and possession of marijuana.

The fire was first reported at 6:23 p.m.

Witnesses told responding Sheriff's Office deputies that he forced his way into the restaurant's front door and lit a Christmas tree on fire.

The museum sits just across Main Street from the Columbia House. "I'm looking right at it. It has been seriously damaged," Connell said. "The exterior is scorched, and it has been boarded up and made into a crime scene. This is rare for us."

The restaurant, at Main and State streets, occupies a building that is a replica from earlier in the 20th century. The original building burned down.

In recent years, the restaurant has been the Jenny Lind and Black Bart's Skillet.

Columbia has California's largest collection of buildings dating to the Gold Rush and the 1850s. It is a living, restored community and the state park represents a town frozen in time.

Columbia is 65 miles east of Stockton along Highway 4 and Parrots Ferry Road. Its living-history programs make it a popular destination for thousands of San Joaquin County students each year.

"This has hit community members pretty hard," said Greg Martin, a superintendent with California State Parks. "Folks who've spent their whole lives here are emotionally attached to the buildings within the park."

Brewer, who has an extensive arrest record in Tuolumne County, was no stranger to the Columbia House.

The first caller who reported the blaze said someone was "attempting to light something." By the time firefighters arrived, the wood structure was fully engulfed. On Monday, Martin said the walls were gone and you could see through them.

Fire investigators have yet to report on the extent of the damages, but the building's frame is still standing.

Adjacent structures, including Angelo's Hall, were unharmed. Engines from Cal Fire and three other firefighting agencies responded.

Martin said he was impressed with the restaurant's new owners, Steve and Doreen Kwasnicki, who said they were determined to begin reconstruction once the criminal investigation is over.

"This disaster isn't going to stop them from reopening, moving forward and doing things even better," Martin said. "Out of ashes, the state parks and the Kwasnickis are going to work together to move forward."